# How long can a cigar last outside of a humidor?



## jswaykos

Since shipping takes four days to me, how much longer can a cigar last without being in an airtight container or humidor? Can they last a week? They'd sit for four more days (inside, still pretty dry) after shipment arrives. Safe?


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## Tman

It'll last couple of years, but it'll be hard as a rock! :drum:

I think a day or two would be the longest I'd leave my cigar out and expect it to taste well. Don't worry. You should be able to re-humidify for two to three weeks and it should taste just like it should!

I might ask for a humidi-pack to be put in if it takes almost a month to ship.


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## Mr. Slick

That's something I have been wondering too. Not so much for delivery/shipping time because when I get a delivery I freeze them, then let them rest a good while before smoking. My concern is for traveling because I have yet to purchase a herfador. Every time I think about buying one I have either already spent too much on cigars or say "nah I'd rather buy some more sticks instead". I go off for the weekend quite often. When I do I just grab a handfull of sticks and put them in a Ci bag or two. I always bring more than I will smoke because I never know how many buddies I will be handing out sticks to.


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## jswaykos

Tman said:


> It'll last couple of years, but it'll be hard as a rock! :drum:
> 
> I think a day or two would be the longest I'd leave my cigar out and expect it to taste well. Don't worry. You should be able to re-humidify for two to three weeks it and it should taste just like it should!


Oh, I'd definitely let them rest for at least that long,. I just didn't know if they'd be completely ruined or if they'd just a little extra added rest.


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## Zfog

It also depends on the humidity outside the humidor. Some geographical locations have a higher natural rh at diff times throughout the year.

After 2 days of being in a dry atmosphere I can usually notice a difference. ie...taste, burn.


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## jswaykos

Zfog said:


> It also depends on the humidity outside the humidor. Some geographical locations have a higher natural rh at diff times throughout the year.
> 
> After 2 days of being in a dry atmosphere I can usually notice a difference. ie...taste, burn.


Without rest, ROTT, or permanently?


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## tiger187126

Always err on the side of too long when you throw them in your humi off of the truck. I've smoked some bad cigars because I wasn't patient enough.


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## Zfog

jswaykos said:


> Without rest, ROTT, or permanently?


If I take a cigar out of my humi and it just lays around for a couple days I can notice a difference. if I then throw it in the humi for a week or so it is fine again. I wouldn't want to do this 30 time or anything... but they bounce back for sure.
As far as how long they can go and still bounce back I have no idea. It would depend on the cigar and how it was stored. I'm sure different cigars would have slight differences.

Maybe some veterans can give us some first hand experiences!


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## Cigary

Zfog said:


> If I take a cigar out of my humi and it just lays around for a couple days I can notice a difference. if I then throw it in the humi for a week or so it is fine again. I wouldn't want to do this 30 time or anything... but they bounce back for sure.
> As far as how long they can go and still bounce back I have no idea. It would depend on the cigar and how it was stored. I'm sure different cigars would have slight differences.
> 
> Maybe some veterans can give us some first hand experiences!


*Leaving your cigar out and just leaving it will change it because it is not in an environment where it should be thriving. Take a rose out of its' vase and you'll notice the effect. A cigar will bounce back as long as you didn't leave it out in the garage or on the back deck where the elements can get harsh. I've left cigars out of their humidors for a couple of days and it's like the dryboxing effect...it's going to lose the original RH pretty quick so as soon as you can stick it back where it belongs the faster it will recover.*


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## MoreBeer

If its a full wrapped box or singles within zip locks, you'll be fine for a week. Cigars are usually kept at 70RH (or slightly higher) where they're shipped from so don't sweat it too much. They won't get wrecked. Believe me.


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## jswaykos

Thanks for all the replies! I can order without worry, other than knowing my sticks will be waiting on my desk, all alone with nobody to smoke them.


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## tiger187126

jswaykos said:


> Thanks for all the replies! I can order without worry, other than knowing my sticks will be waiting on my desk, all alone with nobody to smoke them.


i have mine all shipped to a PO Box which i like better because they're sitting inside, but recently it's seemed like i've had to wait an extra day for them to "process" it.

it kills me waiting, but you can't beat the deals you get online sometimes.


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## BigBenny

I ordered myself some sticks on the 17th (they shipped out then) and here it is the 22nd and they aren't here yet. I'm starting to get worried about em. This was a good time to read this thread, I think. They're boxes/bundles so I'm not sure how they'll react but hopefully they'll be fine


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## jswaykos

BigBenny said:


> I ordered myself some sticks on the 17th (they shipped out then) and here it is the 22nd and they aren't here yet. I'm starting to get worried about em. This was a good time to read this thread, I think. They're boxes/bundles so I'm not sure how they'll react but hopefully they'll be fine


There's all kinds of bad weather around the country right now, so I'm sure they're on their way... slowly. At least it's freezing weather, which is better than extreme heat.


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## Firedawg

I would hate to be in Denver with the dry air they get. You probably could actually see the cigar shrivel in front of you. Honestly cigars were shipped to england and the boat trip took a month or longer. That is why they like their cigars drier to this day. With most online shippers over humidifing their cigar, speed of shipping, ziplocs, your cigars might be low on the RH level but not that low. Now if you dont have a herf, a good ziploc or small Tupperware and a rh travel packet works fine.


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## Northsider

I've had cigars turn into duds merely in a few hours (when I fly short flights I'll just throw them into a zip lock to smoke when I get to the hotel). After 6 or 7 hours total travel time I've had harsh and dry smokes.


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## Mountain Lion

Ziplocs, while not air tight, will cover you for a few days even without a humipak. Anything more than 5-7 days and you'll probably have a significant difference and longer recovery time.


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## Chaz614

Never heard about freezing smoke till I visited this site, How long do u keep sticks in the freezer, and then do u put them right into the humi????


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## marked

I recently found a stick in my car while rooting around looking for something else. I threw it into one of my humis that maintains a RH of about 60. After a couple of weeks, I'll move it to one that maintains 65. Then after that, I'll move it to a tupperware that's easy to keep at 70 where I can hydrate it even more. I live in AZ, so I don't have much hope for it recovering, but maybe it can come back to a decent level.


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## Batista30

I don't know, my cigars usually don't last too long outside the humidor. In a few hours, they somehow turn to ash...:twitch::mrgreen:


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## Lazzzzze

My sister bought me a Montecristo WL for christmas but knew nothing about proper storage. Let's just say they don't hold up very well after a week.


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## rajuabju

More than 48 hours in a dry atmosphere is enough for me to start noticing degradation...

Good thing is, almost always, cigars can be slowly repaired.


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## Tamorand

*Old old box of sticks*

I just found a box of cubans in my Aunt's garage. Box is still nailed shut.
But I'm thinking they have been in there for years - at least 5 maybe longer.
Is there any hope at all for these?


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## Randy956

Zfog said:


> It also depends on the humidity outside the humidor. Some geographical locations have a higher natural rh at diff times throughout the year.
> 
> After 2 days of being in a dry atmosphere I can usually notice a difference. ie...taste, burn.


BINGO!

The answer.... it depends. 

If by chance the outside of the humidor is same humidity and temp as inside, then it will last as long outside as inside. But, what are the chances of the outside conditions being ideal?


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## blackrabbit

If there is no plastic sealing and the garage is less than 60% humidity and they have been in there for years, you can slowly rehab them to proper humidity but the flavor usually will be degraded. The old rehabbed Padron I smoked like that burned well but tasted a bit cardboardy.


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## Randy956

Tamorand said:


> I just found a box of cubans in my Aunt's garage. Box is still nailed shut.
> But I'm thinking they have been in there for years - at least 5 maybe longer.
> Is there any hope at all for these?


What have you got to lose? Give it a try. Put them in a proper environment for a year and see what happens.


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## UBC03

You my friend found a keepsake..

The oils are gone and along with them the taste.. 

Sorry.. You may be able to rehydrate them but the true taste is long gone.

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## bozoo

UBC03 said:


> You my friend found a keepsake..
> 
> The oils are gone and along with them the taste..
> 
> Sorry.. You may be able to rehydrate them but the true taste is long gone.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk


Still, depends on the garage environment. My garage for example keeps it's temperature in sixties F and quite humid, I bet it'll be 60rh. So the cigars left there would be fine.


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## UBC03

bozoo said:


> Still, depends on the garage environment. My garage for example keeps it's temperature in sixties F and quite humid, I bet it'll be 60rh. So the cigars left there would be fine.


So you're trying to say that you trust the environment in your garage enough to leave your next shipment on the shelf instead of putting them away. Give it a shot, tell me how it goes six months from now. Let alone 5 years.

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## bozoo

Oh no, I wouldn't risk leaving any cigars there intentionally. It's just a garage, the environment may vary and it is just a coincidence it changes in an acceptable margin. So no, I don't trust that much, but if I accidentally left a box of sticks there - I'd still have fair amount of hope.


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## UBC03

My basement feels humid also but when I put a hygro in it, the hygro read in the high 40s... 

If I had to use a percentage for the chance those sticks are good to go. It wouldn't be much higher than 1%... 5 years is an eternity for cigars to be left without maintaining a proper environment. Just don't want the guy getting his hopes up, that's all

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## 10Bears

I left some sticks in storage for about 10 years by accident. After rehydration they smoked very well and were tasty as well. I got lucky. You might as well. I'm not saying you will, but you got nothing to loose except for some space in your humidor.


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## 10Bears

UBC03 said:


> My basement feels humid also but when I put a hygro in it, the hygro read in the high 40s...
> 
> If I had to use a percentage for the chance those sticks are good to go. It wouldn't be much higher than 1%... 5 years is an eternity for cigars to be left without maintaining a proper environment. Just don't want the guy getting his hopes up, that's all


I'm with you UBC03, don't want to get his hopes up. It is a really long shot, but hell if it pays off.......


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## Tamorand

Awesome answers gentlemen!
I'm new here (obviously) and I don't want to wear out my welcome, I have one last question.
I have access to a full box sized humidor and my father's walk in humidor that I can put this entire box in without ever pulling the nails.

If I wanted to "Try" to resurrect these, would you pull them from the box and put them in the small humidor and just let it sit for the next year or would you take the entire box and drop the whole thing in the walk in?

The garage is actually quite humid, and used as storage rather than car's and was rarely opened.

Thanks again.


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## UBC03

Agreed.. I just don't see it...AND I'M THE OPTIMISTIC ONE AROUND HERE..lol

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## 10Bears

Tamorand said:


> Awesome answers gentlemen!
> I'm new here (obviously) and I don't want to wear out my welcome, I have one last question.
> I have access to a full box sized humidor and my father's walk in humidor that I can put this entire box in without ever pulling the nails.
> 
> If I wanted to "Try" to resurrect these, would you pull them from the box and put them in the small humidor and just let it sit for the next year or would you take the entire box and drop the whole thing in the walk in?
> 
> The garage is actually quite humid, and used as storage rather than car's and was rarely opened.
> 
> Thanks again.


If it were me. I'd pop the box to look at the sticks. Because you might have just some dried up sticks not cigars in that box. I wouldn't pull them out, but I would smell them. Tobacco smells like tobacco, mold smells like mold. You know what I mean. Then I would get a boveda pack that matches you dad's walk-in Rh and put that in the box with the cigars. Close the lid but leave it open just a bit and check on them in a month. Mainly just to change the boveda if it is dried out. Give them another smell. And maybe just maybe if they look like they could handle it I would take them out of the box for an inspection. Most likely I wouldn't take them out, I would think about doing it the next month. Rinse and repeat for at least 6 months. Like dealing with a sick friend that lives one state away. You want to go see them more often, but you can only make the trip once a month.

But that's what I'd do. It may be right, it maybe wrong, it maybe half and half. I don't know, it's all clicks and whistles to me.


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## koprut69

Short answer: from the moment I pull it out to the moment I light it. And not a second longer.


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## bpegler

Tamorand said:


> Awesome answers gentlemen!
> 
> I'm new here (obviously) and I don't want to wear out my welcome, I have one last question.
> 
> I have access to a full box sized humidor and my father's walk in humidor that I can put this entire box in without ever pulling the nails.
> 
> If I wanted to "Try" to resurrect these, would you pull them from the box and put them in the small humidor and just let it sit for the next year or would you take the entire box and drop the whole thing in the walk in?
> 
> The garage is actually quite humid, and used as storage rather than car's and was rarely opened.
> 
> Thanks again.


Don't open the box. Find a piece of Tupperware large enough to hold it and a Bodeva pack. Put your cigars and Bodeva in the Tupperware, seal it, and put it in a cool dark place for a year.

You might get lucky.


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## csk415

Tamorand said:


> Awesome answers gentlemen!
> 
> I'm new here (obviously) and I don't want to wear out my welcome, I have one last question.
> 
> I have access to a full box sized humidor and my father's walk in humidor that I can put this entire box in without ever pulling the nails.
> 
> If I wanted to "Try" to resurrect these, would you pull them from the box and put them in the small humidor and just let it sit for the next year or would you take the entire box and drop the whole thing in the walk in?
> 
> The garage is actually quite humid, and used as storage rather than car's and was rarely opened.
> 
> Thanks again.


1 of 2 things will be the case. They are dry or they are not dry. Open the box and see what you have. If you think they are worth trying to rehydrate give it a shot. I would buy a air tight Tupperware and Boveda pack. Seal those sticks up, put it in the walk in (since it will be temp controlled) and check on them in 6 months. Smoke one and see what you think at 6 months. More than likely they are to far gone. If you crack the box share a pic of what you have.


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## Bird-Dog

bpegler said:


> Don't open the box. Find a piece of Tupperware large enough to hold it and a Bodeva pack. Put your cigars and Bodeva in the Tupperware, seal it, and put it in a cool dark place for a year.
> 
> You might get lucky.


^This

OP, when @bpegler speaks, people in-the-know listen!


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## UBC03

curmudgeonista said:


> ^This
> 
> OP, when @bpegler speaks, people in-the-know listen!


X's infinity.

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## bpegler

curmudgeonista said:


> ^This
> 
> OP, when @bpegler speaks, people in-the-know listen!


LOL, actually, I imagine that everyone is correct and they're probably toast.

But keeping the cigars in the box will slow down the change in humidity. And that's crucial if he doesn't want them split.


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## Kidvegas

Tamorand said:


> I just found a box of cubans in my Aunt's garage. Box is still nailed shut.
> 
> But I'm thinking they have been in there for years - at least 5 maybe longer.
> 
> Is there any hope at all for these?


Although it's a cool find your chances of rehydration are beyond slim. I'm late to the party tonight wish i would of seen this thread reopened earlier. Speaking from a point of some experience with dried out cigars, which i left in a humi that i thought was perfectly seasoned. The sticks where only inside for maybe six months when i noticed that the profiles had taken a turn for the worst. Stuck them in a tupper for 3 months at 70% to no avail. They came out tasting like dried leaves with a newspaper binder and a toilet paper wrapper...lol! That was only after 6 months with below 60% humidity probably somewhere around 40% which is what my basement usually hovers at.

5 yrs is way beyond recovery IMO...Sorry!

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## Bird-Dog

If I'm answering just the title question, the answer is about an hour on average... once I put a match to it! :vs_cool:


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## Kidvegas

curmudgeonista said:


> If I'm answering just the title question, the answer is about an hour on average... once I put a match to it! :vs_cool:


Lol...sounds about right

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## Tamorand

*Pics of the Box and the sticks*

Well, I've decided to crack the box. I think I'll give the tupperware plus boveda a try and toss it in the walk in for a few months and check on it every so often.

Here are pics of the box and sticks.
Thank you all for the advice I really appreciate all of the turn out for this very very old thread.





































took me a couple tries to drop the pictures


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## Tamorand

They smell really good....hrmmm


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## Del Fuego

Cool pics! Really neat find.

I may be wrong, but I think I see beetle holes. 

Even still, I would be tempted to remove each cigar from the paper, inspect for beetles, and keep any clean ones in their own tupperware with a boveda 65 for at least one month. There's an outside chance that the garage humidity is somewhere in the 60's. Not likely, but possible. Is there a way you can check?


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## Cigary

A cigar can only be quality when it's been taken care of....to conjure the idea of leaving cigars outside of a quality environment and having an expectation of quality is fooling one's self....why change your oil at optimum mileage intervals....why change your HVAC filters....etc. To project the idea that care isn't necessary in the storage of cigars and that they can be left to chance is naive'....with thinking like that why use refrigeration.....why not leave foods wrapped in foil stored in caves? Preparation for any commodity is important as to storage.....to leave things to chance is not being wise....it's called taking chances.


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## bpegler

It's hard to read the box code on my iPhone, but I believe that's a January 1996 box


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## Bird-Dog

bpegler said:


> It's hard to read the box code on my iPhone, but I believe that's a January 1996 box


Could be OI for February, but I agree on the the SA for 1996. Sweet find if they're not goners.

Any opinion on whether the tissue wraps on Fonsecas might help insulate them to some degree, humidity-wise?


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## bpegler

curmudgeonista said:


> Could be OI for February, but I agree on the the SA for 1996. Sweet find if they're not goners.
> 
> Any opinion on whether the tissue wraps on Fonsecas might help insulate them to some degree, humidity-wise?


NIVELACUSO. You know, that's stuck in my head. But that doesn't mean that I always decode correctly. You're absolutely right, it's February, not January.

Tubos might help a bit with RH, but that paper is unlikely to imho. I think it's there for sanitary reasons, if memory serves.

Really, mid 90s Havanas are something special. That box is from before the Cigar boom and the hybrid leaves from the blue mold catastrophe.

I really wish that they had had proper storage. If they had, I would be proud to own that box.


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## Tamorand

Del Fuego said:


> Cool pics! Really neat find.
> 
> I may be wrong, but I think I see beetle holes.
> 
> Even still, I would be tempted to remove each cigar from the paper, inspect for beetles, and keep any clean ones in their own tupperware with a boveda 65 for at least one month. There's an outside chance that the garage humidity is somewhere in the 60's. Not likely, but possible. Is there a way you can check?


The "hole" you see is a dirty spot, I think oil from the cigar perhaps. But no holes.

Well they still smell like tobacco, and most cringed at the idea of 5 years in a garage, but now we're talking 21 years! /sigh 
Pipe dreams are still nice to have sometimes.
I am still going to drop them in the humi with a boveda just for fun. I'll post up in 6 months and give a final verdict.









Tamorand


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## NavinJohnson

I'm new to the forum and I hope this is an appropriate question for this thread. I am seasoning a wineadore now. I have recieved a couple of new boxes of sticks but my tupperdore is completely full. So, if i put a new, unopened box (cellophane and all) in a large ziploc bag with a boveda 69 pack, is it ok to store them like that for the next several days until my wineador is ready?


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## socalocmatt

NavinJohnson said:


> I'm new to the forum and I hope this is an appropriate question for this thread. I am seasoning a wineadore now. I have recieved a couple of new boxes of sticks but my tupperdore is completely full. So, if i put a new, unopened box (cellophane and all) in a large ziploc bag with a boveda 69 pack, is it ok to store them like that for the next several days until my wineador is ready?


Yes, that'll work just fine.


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